Photo Comparison: Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra vs Huawei P30 Pro vs Xiaomi Mi Note 10

The photographic war looks very interesting in 2020. Recall that last year, we started with 48 megapixel sensors, while in the middle of 2019 the first 64 megapixels were released, to end the year eating the grapes with the Mi Note 10 and its 108 megapixels At the moment both the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra , as the aforementioned Mi Note 10 or the Huawei P30 Pro , are several of the exponents in photography and in the new battlefield that has been created around zoom.

At the moment it would not be fair, compare the Huawei P30 Pro with the Mi Note 10 or the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, since the new phones of Samsung and Xiaomi are closer to the launch of the next Huawei P40 Pro than the P30 Pro that was presented in March 2019. However, the P30 Pro arrived with photographic capabilities that still allow it to fight with the high end of 2020 in a very dignified way. Before continuing we will remember the photographic hardware of the three devices:

–	Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra	Huawei P30 Pro	Xiaomi Mi Note 10
Cameras	Rear camera : 108 MP quad (main) f / 1.8 and OIS + 12 MP (wide angle) f / 2.2 + 64 MP (telephoto) f / 3.5 and OIS and 10X hybrid zoom + DepthVision Front camera: 40 MP with ƒ / 2.2	Rear camera : Quad 40 MP f / 1.6 and OIS + 20 MP (Ultra Wide Angle) f / 2.2 + 8 MP (5X optical zoom, 10X hybrid, 50X digital) f / 3.4 and OIS + ToF, with Huawei AIS and Hybrid Autofocus Front camera : 32 MP f / 2.2	Rear Camera: fivefold 108MP f / 1.69 OIS + 20MP (Ultra Wide Angle) f / 2.2 + 12MP f / 2.0 + 5MP (long telephoto) f / 2.0 OIS + 2MP f / 2.4 (macro lens) Front Camera : 32MP f / 2.0

In this photographic comparison made by GSMarena, the new Galaxy S20 Ultra has been compared on the one hand with the Huawei P30 Pro, and then they have made the fight of the 108 megapixel sensors between the S20 Ultra itself and the Mi Note 10. Recall that In this year’s model, Samsung has incorporated what they have called “Space Zoom” and that reaches no less than 100X zoom. The Huawei P30 Pro on the other hand, has a 5X zoom that can reach a 50X digital zoom, something that surprised its own and strangers last year. The advantage for the Huawei P30 Pro is its seniority, and the large number of updates it has received during these months to improve its cameras.

Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra vs Huawei P30 Pro

Night photo

We have recently made a technical comparison between the Galaxy S20 Ultra and the Huawei P30 Pro . We know that night photos are the litmus tests for many sensors. In this way you can see their ability to capture light and how manufacturers have worked in the subsequent processing of the image. It is useless to have great hardware without software that supports the results. In this first shot, we see how both terminals defend themselves well, but perhaps the P30 Pro compensates the light input somewhat better so as not to over-illuminate the building. The blue light of the windows has more impact on the Samsung terminal.

Zooming in

If night photos are already a challenge for a sensor, when we start zooming we increase the challenge even more. In these photos with 4X zoom of the same scene and without the Night Mode activated, we see how both sensors still have no problems to capture the light, but the interpretation of the scene is very different in one and the other. The Galaxy S20 Ultra offers in this case a better sharpness, while the P30 Pro has lost detail.

Night mode activated

With the same 4x zoom and Night Mode activated on both devices, things change considerably. We see how the interpretation of color is more similar in the two mobiles, although the sharpness is still on the side of the Galaxy S20 Ultra, where you can see more detail in the textures of the tree or the wall. The Huawei P30 Pro sins of wanting to grab more light than desired to achieve a realistic result, and it can be seen in an overlit window. The compensation between the light input and the detail is vital, to achieve a result according to the desired.

Scene in broad daylight

A scene in broad daylight should not involve any effort for a good sensor. However, in this comparison we see again very different interpretations by both terminals. The Galaxy S20 Ultra controls the light input well to keep the colors and details true to reality. The Huawei P30 Pro burns the image a little more by sinning slightly from overexposure . But ironically, this exhibition allows you to capture some detail that is less appreciated in the S20 Ultra, such as the clouds that appear behind the building.

The thing gets serious

We begin to see the zoom capabilities of both devices with a 30x zoom , focusing on the clock of the previous image. It is still surprising to see this in a mobile, but until recently it only surprised in the P30 Pro. We see how Samsung maintains a better level of detail at this zoom level, something that can be seen in the surrounding mosaics and numbers.

Zoom to maximum

In the following image the maximum zoom capacity of both terminals has been applied. This means that the Galaxy S20 Ultra has used its 100X zoom for the 50X of the P30 Pro. At this time, it is worth asking what each user needs, since obviously, the results are better on the P30 Pro with less zoom. There is no doubt that Samsung will polish its 100x zoom and that there will be updates that are coming. However, it is very possible that most users prefer a sharper 50X to an extension that loses almost all its detail.

See the invisible

In this image, also in broad daylight, we see how the Galaxy S20 more faithfully represents the color of the ground, the sky and even offers a better detail of the mountains in the background. Huawei’s cell phone captures more light than necessary in this type of environment, which makes it lose detail. In the following images we will see how the maximum zoom of both terminals can reveal details that at first glance would be almost impossible to appreciate.

Revealing details

As we see in the image, above the mountain there is a kind of building that comes to light when applying the maximum zoom of both devices. Neither with the Galaxy S20 Ultra and its 100X zoom nor with the P30 Pro at 50X can we see the building in detail, but we can deduce what we are seeing. We are looking at another example that these capabilities may be more like a curiosity than a real experience of taking pictures and saving them forever.

108 megapixel war

In these photos, we will see the Galaxy S20 Ultra and the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 as a more fair comparison. We will see how two 108 megapixel sensors fight each other to be the best camera of the year, and how both terminals interpret the scenes differently.

Photo in full light

As can be seen, in the blinds of the balconies, each terminal has its own lacks with the handling of details. The Galaxy S20 Ultra must still polish its interpretation of color to approximate reality . For its part, the Mi Note 10 and its Quad Bayer technology perform a better interpretation of the details, but it shows color errors in black tones.

Technical tie?

It’s hard to find a clear winner in the castle scene. No more or less details can be seen in one or another image. The color interpretation is practically the same in both terminals, although we find slightly lighter tones in the Xiaomi terminal.

Open sky

The last comparison scene between the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra and the Xiaomi Mi Note 10, shows an open sky landscape. Once again both terminals offer a faithful representation of the color, once again noticing lighter colors in the Xiaomi Mi Note 10. This makes the representation of the sky more detailed in the Samsung terminal.

Conclusions

We are still at the dawn of the 108 megapixel sensors and the large zoom capabilities. We are sure that both the Galaxy S20 Ultra and the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 have room for improvement that will come in successive software updates. We have also seen how the Huawei P30 Pro remains firm, but we are facing a device from the beginning of 2019. The fair fight will take place at the moment when the Chinese company to know the new P40 Pro, something that will presumably occur during the next month of March.